Astonishing X-Men Delivers Long-awaited Return (With a Twist)

Guess who's back?

Astonishing X-Men #6 by writer Charles Soule and artist Mike del Mundo saw the return of an iconic X-Men character, but with a twist.

Warning: full spoilers ahead!

Art by Mike del Mundo. (Marvel Comics)

Charles Xavier is back from the dead, which is no surprise to anyone reading Astonishing X-Men since it began in July, but his return came with a big price.

The six-part story arc “Life of X” began with a team of X-Men responding to a disturbance, only to find out that it was caused by a chess match being played on the astral plane between the Shadow King and Xavier. After being killed by a Dark Phoenix-possessed Cyclops in the pages of 2012’s Avengers vs. X-Men, Xavier’s consciousness ascended into the astral plane and was held prisoner there by the Shadow King. Time passes differently on the astral plane, so Xavier essentially spent centuries in his clutches, until he was able to summon his X-Men to help turn the tide against his foe.

In the end, the Shadow King cheated to beat Xavier in their game, but then Xavier revealed he wasn’t playing by the rules either. Turns out he had summoned Rogue, Mystique and Fantomex to where they were playing their game, and their combined might was enough to throw off the Shadow King and allow Xavier to break finally break free.

Art by Mike del Mundo. (Marvel Comics)

In the aftermath, we see the end of a conversation between Xavier and Fantomex that began in Astonishing X-Men #5. Fantomex admits that he’s a murderer, thief and liar who is truly awful and that he wants a way to wash all of that away, and so he allows Xavier to take over his body. Sacrificing yourself in order to return the founder of the X-Men, teacher to many, and dreamer of peace and a better tomorrow for all, is certainly a good play for redemption in the world’s eyes. As the issue ends, we see that Xavier is now in control of Fantomex’s body and he wants to go by simply “X.”

Art by Mike del Mundo. (Marvel Comics)

We don’t know if Fantomex is dead-dead or if perhaps his mind is still somewhere on the astral plane. There's also the matter of Xaxier's abilities: will he have his original gifts or will he now only have Fantomex's powers of illusion? And of course we're eager to see the reaction of both the other X-Men and the greater superhero community when they see that Xavier is alive and in a younger body. We’ll likely learn in Astonishing X-Men #7 and beyond as the next story arc, “A Man Called X,” begins in January 2018.

Joshua is IGN’s Comics Editor. If Pokemon, Green Lantern, or Game of Thrones are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter @JoshuaYehl and IGN.